The 1986 Daytona 500 was the first stock car race of the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 28th iteration of the event.

However, by the final lap, Earnhardt ran out of fuel, leading Bodine to cruise to an easy victory, having dominated for a majority of the race.

[1][2] Hagan Enterprises' Terry Labonte and Junior Johnson & Associates' Darrell Waltrip finished second and third, respectively.

The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long.

Bill Elliott, driving for Melling Racing, won the pole, setting a time of 43.894 and an average speed of 205.039 miles per hour (329.978 km/h) in Monday's session.